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| LEXMA AB610 Laser Bluetooth 'Germ Free' Mouse |
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A germ free mouse? Well it’s certainly a very different
marketing concept, and without access to a medical laboratory to do some swab testing, how can you prove it? Well we thought we’d have a quick look at this mouse anyway.
The AB610 from LEXMA is a Bluetooth mouse with no receiver included, so your PC or notebook will have to have Bluetooth capability already – not a big problem for most modern notebooks. Our notebook discovered the mouse and paired to it without any problems, and hasn’t lost its link over the last two days. However when the computer is idle for a long period of time, it takes a few seconds of mouse movement to regain its connection and start working. This is done automatically so no user intervention is required, all part of the mouse’s power saving techniques.
The AB610 uses a 2000dpi Laser movement tracking system and is very sensitive, I even had to turn the cursor speed in Windows right down to make it more useable. The instructions say I can switch between 2000 and 1000dpi to make it less sensitive by toggling the scroll wheel left or right, I did this and noticed no difference whatsoever, maybe it changed something, maybe it didn’t it will forever remain one of life’s little mysteries.
As a Bluetooth mouse it works reasonably well, the Laser tracking engine works quite well also, and is very sensitive, but what really intrigues us about this mouse is its claim to be germ free. The package says it “Uses ‘Advanced Nano-Technology’ that neutralises a wide spectrum of bacteria while effectively providing continuous protection” Even the office hypochondriac couldn’t argue with that spiel!
After using the mouse for a day, I am happy to say that I haven’t fallen over dead due to a bacterial infection, so by all accounts the nano-tech bacteria guard on the mouse seems to be working like a charm. Good thing too, the last mouse I used had me off work for a week, however the boss didn’t believe me and docked my pay anyway, but at least I’m not being cynical about it.
The mouse itself is powered by 2 x AAA rechargeable batteries (included) and comes with a USB cable so you can charge the mouse from your PC or laptop, while you’re using it. Battery life with the cheap rechargeables included seems to be very good, it has lasted a few days so far without a charge, but there’s no way of telling how much power is left until a light flashes on the mouse to indicate a low battery, so it would be a good idea to keep the charging cable close by or in your laptop bag just in case.
The shell of the mouse feels no different to any other make or model, I was actually half expecting something special here, with all its claims of bacterial protection, I was expecting a different feel to the outer skin of the mouse, but alas, it was nothing out of the ordinary, just the normal cheap plastic feel.
The mouse I have here is a one-off demo model brought in by the distributors, so no pricing is available yet nor is there news of whether or not it will be sold in Australia at all, we will update this article if and when pricing becomes available.